TheGodlessUtopian
6th August 2012, 03:08
Since I am not fully aquatinted with Che’s writings, and though I believe it has a high probability to be correct, I do not guarantee that everything said within this guide is 100% correct. If you are more familiar with Che’s writings and find a mistake please comment or let me know.
This study guide is in relation to Ernesto "Che" Guevara's essay,On Revolutionary Medicine (http://www.marxists.org/archive/guevara/1960/08/19.htm), on the conduct of doctors within a revolution. Though it flips between the literal and metaphorical it is a fascinating piece on his theory of societal progress.
~ ~ ~
Q1: How did Che begin to change his life outlook from wanting to perform medicine to become famous to helping the poor (http://www.revleft.com/vb/#)?
A1: He traveled throughout South and Central America and observed and lived among the working class. On his journey he encountered many stricken people who were forced to endure such hardship and loses that by the time of his return he knew his life path had to be different.
Q2: In what conditions does one have to be in order to be considered a revolutionary?
A2: One has to live in revolutionary times in order to be considered a revolutionary. They must reject solitary work in favor of militant work in groups; isolation, “even a lifetime’s dedication” is worthless if “one works alone… on some corner of America.” The people must be mobilized and be prepared to be trained in the use of arms. Anything other than these conditions and one cannot be considered a revolutionary.
Q3: Establishing that one cannot work in isolation “how is [one] supposed to unite individual endeavor with the needs of society?”
A3: Che answers this by saying a new man must be created. He stresses that everyone needs to look deep inside themselves and perform critical evaluations of their actions and intents before the Cuban Revolution. He says that the depositing of all gleamed information will result in the new man being created far faster.
Q4: What does this new man look like?
A4: According to Che the “New Man” is a person who fuses the physical work into the labor of the revolution. To illustrate this he uses the example of the Sierra Maestra laborers and how they proudly walked to the Patriotic festivals with hoes and axes raised; their children, who for the first time upon seeing a light-bulb, exclaimed how the stars were so close. These are the New Men, these are the people who will combine strenuous physical efforts with the revolution.
Q5: Che calls the combination of united physical effort with that of the goal of the revolution “social medicine.” What have been the accomplishments of this theory when Che lived?
A5: Feeding youth, educating the army of revolutionary doctrine, and redistributing lands once held by landlords were the principal accomplishments of Social Medicine when Che lived in Cuba.
Q6: When one is following the theory of Social Medicine, what is the proper course of action to take when battling diseases?
A6: By diseases Che is referring to societal ills which negate gains made by the revolution. To battle these ills he says that the creation of a “Robust Body” must be made. This body would be the result of hard-labor made by the whole of the Cuban people, thereby affecting all of society. Che goes on to say that someday medicine will have to converts itself into a science which prevents diseases and only intervenes in society in order to perform surgery (I.E major reorientation so as to protect the revolution).
Q7: What does the revolution do in regards to the individual?
A7: The revolution according to Che orients peoples’ talents and traits so as to use each person’s skills in a manner which most benefits the collective whole. Doing this is actually liberates a person instead of standardizing it like reactionaries claim (http://www.revleft.com/vb/#).
Q8: How would the future of individualism in Cuba change had Che’s theory been realized?
A8: Individualism of the future would have changed in the form of individuals using their efforts to benefit the whole.
Q9: How would one “get to the heart” of the medical question to understand what ails a society?
A9: For Cuba Che recommends traveling to cooperatives and work centers and to live among the people there, to discover what begets them and drags them down, what has been plaguing them for years. A revolutionary doctor must go to the core of his new work and understand his place within the collective.
Q10: Why mustn’t we view the future with fatalism and separate members of classes into predefined camps?
A10: Class origin defines one’s intentions and actions in many circumstances. Like with the story of the graduating youth who did not want to attend being juxtaposed against Che’s own story of being in a privileged position when he arrived in Cuba, the revolution trains all men to be humble and serve.
Q11: How does one “show solidarity” among the oppressed classes?
A11: In the past people have interacted with their fellow man by being charitable. However being charitable is a bourgeois constraint which enables those of a more privileged class to sneer down upon those who are more oppressed than they. Being charitable means lecturing the lower classes on all aspects of their identity and implying hos it is incorrect. Showing solidarity, however, is the opposite. In place of unconscious sneering one is eager to give one’s labor in an effort to learn from the more oppressed.
Che though also stresses that though one is humble in spirit and eager to learn from these oppressed peoples it must not distract the learner from the goals of the revolution. He explains that it will, at times, be necessary to be a diplomat and politician when attempting to convince the oppressed classes to perform certain actions which better the revolution.
Q12: What are the goals in which Cuba is striving towards and how do, according to Che, the Cuban people supposed to reach said goals?
A12: To Che the goal of the Cuban revolution is to be economically and militarily independent. To be a free nation among all nations and to not have to consult any great power before redistributing wealth, is above all, the penultimate goal. To reach this goal Che says that the Cuban people must be united against their common enemy (The United States).
Q13: What is the vehicle for getting to know someone as a fellow revolutionary?
A13: Though Che says that working alongside someone is a decent avenue for becoming better acquainted with them his prime focus is the belief that the Cuban militia is the best vehicle. He says this because at the time of writing he believed Cuba faced imminent attack by Imperialist powers. Using his experiences as a guerilla he fervently believed that under the auspices of this vehicle (the militia) in the event of such an attack the Cuban people would be united in the most complete manner.
Q14: What should the people militias be in peacetime?
A14: Che writes that “the militias should be, in populous centres, the tool which unifies the people.” They should live to serve the people and to solve problems they have. This is the role for both the doctors’ militia as well as the people (armed) militia. Under such conditions the individuals within the militias will be able to practice extreme solidarity not only among themselves but among the people whom they serve.
This study guide is in relation to Ernesto "Che" Guevara's essay,On Revolutionary Medicine (http://www.marxists.org/archive/guevara/1960/08/19.htm), on the conduct of doctors within a revolution. Though it flips between the literal and metaphorical it is a fascinating piece on his theory of societal progress.
~ ~ ~
Q1: How did Che begin to change his life outlook from wanting to perform medicine to become famous to helping the poor (http://www.revleft.com/vb/#)?
A1: He traveled throughout South and Central America and observed and lived among the working class. On his journey he encountered many stricken people who were forced to endure such hardship and loses that by the time of his return he knew his life path had to be different.
Q2: In what conditions does one have to be in order to be considered a revolutionary?
A2: One has to live in revolutionary times in order to be considered a revolutionary. They must reject solitary work in favor of militant work in groups; isolation, “even a lifetime’s dedication” is worthless if “one works alone… on some corner of America.” The people must be mobilized and be prepared to be trained in the use of arms. Anything other than these conditions and one cannot be considered a revolutionary.
Q3: Establishing that one cannot work in isolation “how is [one] supposed to unite individual endeavor with the needs of society?”
A3: Che answers this by saying a new man must be created. He stresses that everyone needs to look deep inside themselves and perform critical evaluations of their actions and intents before the Cuban Revolution. He says that the depositing of all gleamed information will result in the new man being created far faster.
Q4: What does this new man look like?
A4: According to Che the “New Man” is a person who fuses the physical work into the labor of the revolution. To illustrate this he uses the example of the Sierra Maestra laborers and how they proudly walked to the Patriotic festivals with hoes and axes raised; their children, who for the first time upon seeing a light-bulb, exclaimed how the stars were so close. These are the New Men, these are the people who will combine strenuous physical efforts with the revolution.
Q5: Che calls the combination of united physical effort with that of the goal of the revolution “social medicine.” What have been the accomplishments of this theory when Che lived?
A5: Feeding youth, educating the army of revolutionary doctrine, and redistributing lands once held by landlords were the principal accomplishments of Social Medicine when Che lived in Cuba.
Q6: When one is following the theory of Social Medicine, what is the proper course of action to take when battling diseases?
A6: By diseases Che is referring to societal ills which negate gains made by the revolution. To battle these ills he says that the creation of a “Robust Body” must be made. This body would be the result of hard-labor made by the whole of the Cuban people, thereby affecting all of society. Che goes on to say that someday medicine will have to converts itself into a science which prevents diseases and only intervenes in society in order to perform surgery (I.E major reorientation so as to protect the revolution).
Q7: What does the revolution do in regards to the individual?
A7: The revolution according to Che orients peoples’ talents and traits so as to use each person’s skills in a manner which most benefits the collective whole. Doing this is actually liberates a person instead of standardizing it like reactionaries claim (http://www.revleft.com/vb/#).
Q8: How would the future of individualism in Cuba change had Che’s theory been realized?
A8: Individualism of the future would have changed in the form of individuals using their efforts to benefit the whole.
Q9: How would one “get to the heart” of the medical question to understand what ails a society?
A9: For Cuba Che recommends traveling to cooperatives and work centers and to live among the people there, to discover what begets them and drags them down, what has been plaguing them for years. A revolutionary doctor must go to the core of his new work and understand his place within the collective.
Q10: Why mustn’t we view the future with fatalism and separate members of classes into predefined camps?
A10: Class origin defines one’s intentions and actions in many circumstances. Like with the story of the graduating youth who did not want to attend being juxtaposed against Che’s own story of being in a privileged position when he arrived in Cuba, the revolution trains all men to be humble and serve.
Q11: How does one “show solidarity” among the oppressed classes?
A11: In the past people have interacted with their fellow man by being charitable. However being charitable is a bourgeois constraint which enables those of a more privileged class to sneer down upon those who are more oppressed than they. Being charitable means lecturing the lower classes on all aspects of their identity and implying hos it is incorrect. Showing solidarity, however, is the opposite. In place of unconscious sneering one is eager to give one’s labor in an effort to learn from the more oppressed.
Che though also stresses that though one is humble in spirit and eager to learn from these oppressed peoples it must not distract the learner from the goals of the revolution. He explains that it will, at times, be necessary to be a diplomat and politician when attempting to convince the oppressed classes to perform certain actions which better the revolution.
Q12: What are the goals in which Cuba is striving towards and how do, according to Che, the Cuban people supposed to reach said goals?
A12: To Che the goal of the Cuban revolution is to be economically and militarily independent. To be a free nation among all nations and to not have to consult any great power before redistributing wealth, is above all, the penultimate goal. To reach this goal Che says that the Cuban people must be united against their common enemy (The United States).
Q13: What is the vehicle for getting to know someone as a fellow revolutionary?
A13: Though Che says that working alongside someone is a decent avenue for becoming better acquainted with them his prime focus is the belief that the Cuban militia is the best vehicle. He says this because at the time of writing he believed Cuba faced imminent attack by Imperialist powers. Using his experiences as a guerilla he fervently believed that under the auspices of this vehicle (the militia) in the event of such an attack the Cuban people would be united in the most complete manner.
Q14: What should the people militias be in peacetime?
A14: Che writes that “the militias should be, in populous centres, the tool which unifies the people.” They should live to serve the people and to solve problems they have. This is the role for both the doctors’ militia as well as the people (armed) militia. Under such conditions the individuals within the militias will be able to practice extreme solidarity not only among themselves but among the people whom they serve.